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Servings:

Lemony Pesto Pasta Salad

A fairly classic pesto pasta, with a few tweaks bringing it to life. The creamy avocado is a nice balance to the sharp, garlicky pesto and adds great texture. The arugula gives a pop of rich, dark green to the pasta and makes this dish feel more definitively in the ‘pasta salad’ category.

Total Time

30min

4.0

1 Rating

Author: Lidey Likes

Servings:

Ingredients

•

1 lb

Penne Pasta

or Fusilli Pasta

•

1/3 cup

Pine Nuts , divided

•

1 Tbsp

Roughly Chopped Garlic

•

2 cups

Fresh Basil Leaves , firmly packed

•

1/2 cup

Fresh Mint Leaves , firmly packed

•

Lemons , juiced, divided

•

1/2 cup

Olive Oil

•

1/2 cup

Freshly Grated Parmesan Cheese

•

2 cups

Baby Arugula , firmly packed

•

Ripe Avocados

•

1/2 tsp

Kosher Salt

Cooking Instructions

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the Penne Pasta (1 lb) and cook according to the directions on the package, then drain and place in a large bowl.

Drizzle the pasta lightly with olive oil, toss, and allow it to cool slightly while you make the pesto.

In the bowl of a food processor, combine Pine Nuts (3 Tbsp) and the Garlic (1 Tbsp) , process until finely minced.

Add the Fresh Basil Leaves (2 cups) , Fresh Mint Leaves (1/2 cup) , 3 Tbsp of the Lemon Juice (2) , and Kosher Salt (1/2 tsp) , pulse until the herbs are coarsely chopped.

With the processor running, slowly pour in the Olive Oil (1/2 cup) and process until smooth. Add the Parmesan Cheese (1/2 cup) and pulse until just combined.

Add the pesto to the cooked pasta and toss well to coat. Add the Baby Arugula (2 cups) and the remaining Pine Nuts (2 Tbsp) and toss again.

Dice the Avocados (2) into bite-size pieces and place them in a small bowl. Add the remaining 1 Tbsp of Lemon Juice and toss.

Add the avocado to the pasta and toss gently to combine. Taste for seasonings and serve at room temperature.

Author's Notes

The sharp, nutty flavor of freshly grated Parmesan is essential here- avoid the pre-grated stuff if you can.

If you aren’t big on arugula, you can leave it out! On that note, feel free to add cherry tomatoes if you want.

For the brightest green pesto, this pasta is best served the day it’s made. If possible, wait to add the avocado until shortly before serving.

Nutrition Per Serving

CALORIES

472

FAT

25.9 g

PROTEIN

11.4 g

CARBS

50.7 g